Stroudsburg stabbing victim heads to court on DUI charge

The victim of a May 7 stabbing in Stroudsburg will head to Monroe County Court for the April 21 charges of driving under the influence and fleeing/trying to elude police.

ANDREW SCOTT

The victim of a May 7 stabbing in Stroudsburg will head to Monroe County Court for the April 21 charges of driving under the influence and fleeing/trying to elude police.

In a wheelchair with his left leg propped up, Dennis McWilliams, 27, of Stroudsburg, entered Stroud Township district court Friday, accompanied by his mother and a friend, said defense attorney Fred Cutaio.

The leg injury extends from a May 7 argument on South Eighth Street with Ignard Rondon. Rondon, 26, is charged with stabbing McWilliams in the right rear shoulder and stomping on and breaking McWilliams' left leg, during the fight.

McWilliams had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing Friday before Stroud Township Magisterial District Judge C. Daniel Higgins Jr. on DUI and other charges stemming from an April 21 incident.

McWilliams waived his right to that hearing and will appear at a future date in county court, where he plans to plead guilty to DUI and fleeing/trying to elude police, Cutaio said.

As of Friday, McWilliams was free on unsecured bail in this case. The most serious incident on his prior criminal record is a 2009 guilty plea to drug paraphernalia possession, a misdemeanor for which he was fined, according to court papers.

Cutaio was not sure on Friday about how much jail time, if any, McWilliams could face on the guilty pleas in this current case.

A state police affidavit gives the following account:

At about 2:30 a.m. on April 21, Stroud Area Regional Police saw McWilliams run stop signs at Thomas and Ninth streets, then Tenth and Sarah streets, then Tenth Street and Church Alley and finally Tenth and West Main streets in Stroudsburg.

McWilliams then turned onto West Main Street, almost hit three pedestrians and sped away toward Stroud Township, going over 60 mph as he approached the Dreher Avenue intersection.

SARP and state police were pursuing McWilliams at that point. SARP stopped at the Hamilton Township line, where its jurisdiction ends, while state police continued the pursuit.

State police finally caught up to McWilliams as he slowed, turned onto Polk Valley Road in Hamilton Township and then made a left turn into the Hickory Valley Plaza parking lot.

Police ordered McWilliams out of the vehicle and "immediately noticed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person," and that "he had bloodshot, glassy eyes and spoke with a slurred speech pattern." McWilliams failed field sobriety tests and was arrested.

McWilliams said he has been enrolled in a drug/alcohol program since then and is trying to improve his life, according to Cutaio.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.